In grateful recognition of a transformational $95 million lead gift from longtime University of Alabama at Birmingham supporter Marnix E. Heersink, M.D., the UAB School of Medicine will now be named the UAB Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine.
The record gift is the single largest philanthropic commitment in university history and will name the UAB Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine, as well as establish and name the Marnix E. Heersink Institute of Biomedical Innovation and the Mary Heersink Institute for Global Health. The gift will provide support with both endowed and outright funds for key initiatives of the School of Medicine.
Heersink, a renowned eye surgeon, innovator and entrepreneur, desires this gift to inspire and catalyze additional philanthropic contributions that support high-impact recruitments, programs and research in the School of Medicine. UAB will enhance this philanthropic support with a generous contribution of $5 million from Triton Health Systems, bringing the total support for the school to $100 million.
UAB Senior Vice President of Medicine and Dean of the School of Medicine Selwyn Vickers, M.D., FACS, says the Heersink gift and others it inspires will set the future course of the School of Medicine.
“On behalf of the School of Medicine and all the people we serve across Alabama, the nation and the world — now and in the years to come — I sincerely thank Dr. Heersink,” Vickers said. “This act of tremendous generosity reflects his heart for service and the scale of our shared ambition for the UAB School of Medicine to be a global leader in biomedical discovery and innovation, medical training, and patient care. It is a powerful affirmation of the unlimited potential of our school and reinforces what we have always known: that UAB truly is a world-class institution.”
